Children's Home run by North Lakes Children’s Service Limited in Cumbria

Good

The children’s home provides effective services that meet the requirements for good.

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The children’s home provision is good because:

 Young people benefit from very high staffing ratios, allowing them to have good quality individual attention on a regular basis.  Young people’s individual and specific needs are understood well by staff, who provide nurturing care and support young people to develop and progress at their own pace.  Young people’s progression in all areas is good and is clearly documented each month. A high level of progression monitoring ensures that any issues are identified and addressed at an early stage.  The home is developing a therapeutic approach to care and provides extensive training and support to enable staff to understand and implement its therapy model.  The care provided to young people is integrated. Education is on the same site (for some young people) and the company employs a nurse and a lead therapist to ensure that needs across a wide range are met.  Risk assessment and management are extremely robust. Young people’s

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The children’s home provision is good because:

behaviour reflects them feeling safe and in discussion they report feeling safe.  Consequences are restorative in nature and help young people to understand and improve behaviour. There has been one incident of sanction being imposed that a child did not understand, and the recording was not sufficiently detailed.  One incident of inappropriate use of physical management of a child has taken place. Managers have identified this and have responded robustly.  Management of the home continues to be of an extremely high standard. Managers have an exceptional commitment to the young people and drive improvement within the home.

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Statutory requirements

This section sets out the actions which must be taken so that the registered person(s) meet(s) the Care Standards Act 2000, the Children’s Homes (England) Regulations 2015 and the ‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’. The registered person(s) must comply within the given timescales.

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Requirement Due date

19: (1) No measure of control or discipline which is excessive, unreasonable or contrary to paragraph (2) may be used in relation to any child. Specifically this relates to ensuring that staff follow procedure and guidelines in behaviour management and physical intervention, and do not unnecessarily cause situations which result in physical intervention and do not use physical intervention to enforce compliance. (Regulation 19) 27/03/2017

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Requirement Due date

11: The positive relationships standard In order to meet the positive relationships standard the registered person must ensure that staff communicate to each child the expectations about the child’s behaviour and ensure that the child understands those expectations in accordance with the child’s age and understanding. (Regulation 11(2)(a)(v)) Specifically, consequences should be reasonable and proportionate, they should be effectively communicated to young people and they should be recorded in detail. (Regulation 11) 27/03/2017

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Recommendations

To improve the quality and standards of care further, the service should take account of the following recommendation:

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Recommendations

 Expectations of standards of behaviour should be high for all staff and children in the home. These standards should be clear and unambiguous. (‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’, page 39, paragraph 8.11). Specifically rules and boundaries should be implemented consistently by all staff and staff should communicate effectively with each other regarding consistency of behaviour management.

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Information about this children’s home

This home is operated by a private provider, who has three other children’s homes in the locality. The home is registered for eight children who may have emotional and behavioural difficulties. The organisation also operates a school, registered with the Department for Education, providing fully integrated programmes of care and education.

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Recent inspection history

Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement 31/10/2016 Interim Sustained effectiveness 14/03/2016 Interim Improved effectiveness 24/11/2015 Full Outstanding 20/03/2015 Interim Improved effectiveness

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Good

Young people’s individual needs are very well understood. The home gathers extensive information prior to a young person being placed to ensure successful matching and to begin to develop plans for them before they arrive at the home. Each young person has a case formulation compiled by the lead therapist to advise staff on the young person’s needs and the best approaches to working with them. The staffing ratios are currently very high, with young people benefiting from one- to-one staff support. This allows them to develop close and trusting relationships and to have the high level of adult attention that they desire. This is particularly apparent at bedtimes when all young people get one-to-one time for a story or just to talk, which helps them to settle. Progression across all areas for young people is very good. The home excels at promoting emotional and behavioural development. A high level of attention is paid

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Good

to each young person and staff are alert to any changes in presentation or behaviour, which may indicate that something is affecting them. There are numerous channels for young people to express their feelings and their close relationships with staff, particularly their key workers, allow them to do so. Young people attend either the on-site school or the new off-site provision, which offer a nurturing curriculum. Young people’s attendance at school is extremely good and all are reported to be making good progress relative to their starting points. The school reports excellent communication with the home and high levels of support with education, including homework. Young people are involved in a range of activities that support their physical, social and educational development. They are encouraged and supported to participate in local clubs in order to learn new skills and develop new friendships. One young

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Good

person is keen to practise his hockey skills and brought home several hockey sticks from school for staff to play with him. Staff encourage physical activity to support a healthy lifestyle, although one young person reported that the food was ‘too healthy’. The home is developing a therapeutic approach to care and provides extensive training and support to enable staff to understand and implement its therapy model. Staff are keen to further their understanding of children’s histories and how that affects their behaviour and presentation. They are committed to parenting in a therapeutic way and are open to using advice and guidance from the therapist. The advice provided by the therapist is research-based and focuses heavily on young people’s early experiences and the impact on their brain development. The model uses PACE (playfulness, acceptance, curiosity, empathy), which all staff are trained in. Additionally, some young people access external therapy, which is highly

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Good

successful. Young people who have moved on from the home have been well supported to do so. One young person has returned home and two others have progressed to other homes within the company which cater for an older age range. Progression for some has been challenging but has been well managed, as has the impact on the remaining young people. Some young people are developing independence skills in preparation for moving on and can successfully budget for and prepare meals. Younger children are supported with their washing day and room tidying to begin the process of learning self-care skills. Some issues with consistency of behaviour management have led to young people displaying different behaviours with different staff. This has been acknowledged by staff, and managers are working with the staff team to try to resolve the communication issues which have resulted in these inconsistencies. One particular

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Good

consequence imposed was not effectively communicated to the young person and not properly recorded and has led to a requirement. A great deal of effort and thought goes into ensuring that the home feels like a ‘home’ to the young people. Bedrooms are highly individual and personalised to reflect each young person’s interests and preferences. External agencies speak very highly of the care that the home provides to young people. One independent reviewing officer commented: ‘I feel strongly that staff are incredibly strong advocates for [X]. They know him inside out. They understand his needs, triggers and anxieties and how to respond to them.’

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Good

All young people report that they feel safe in the home and that staff help and protect them. They each have a ‘worry monster’ in their room who they feed their worries to, which helps to manage any anxieties they have. Some children make use of soft toys to self-soothe, or share their worries through a feelings book with staff. They are regularly encouraged to express their feelings and anxieties and this allows staff to help address any worries that they have. Young people feel able to express themselves openly due to having close and trusting relationships with staff. Risks for young people are known and understood. Detailed individual risk management plans identify individual risks for each young person and these are regularly updated. Young people at this home show low risks in areas such as going missing from home, drug and alcohol misuse, criminal behaviour and child sexual exploitation. Access to the internet and social networking is highly regulated

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Good

due to the young people’s ages and risk levels. Some young people do have some free time and are supported and encouraged to use these appropriately. Detailed pre-placement planning and matching ensure that the home is alert to any risks relevant to a young person prior to their placement. This allows the home to plan and anticipate issues and reduce risks. Staff support young people to manage their emotions and behaviours safely. They have good understanding of young people’s triggers and are trained and skilled at de-escalating situations involving young people effectively. This has led to a significant reduction in physical interventions for one young person. Other young people have experienced very high numbers of physical interventions at certain times (for example, initial stages of placement, Christmas, preparing to transition out of the home) and managers have analysed the reasons behind this effectively.

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Good

All incidents of restraint are well recorded and are reviewed for effectiveness and learning. The young person’s views are always sought and recorded. There has been one incident when, during a series of physical interventions, a young person had an item of clothing forcibly changed. This contributed to further physical interventions and the situation was mismanaged by staff. The manager made a complaint on the young person’s behalf and this was investigated and acted on, with several staff receiving disciplinary action. While the practice during this incident was poor, the management response and the learning have been effective. All relevant agencies were informed and were happy with the home’s response to the incident. A requirement is made in respect of behaviour management and discipline as a result of this incident. There has been one investigation into an allegation of harm. This has been investigated and shared with the appropriate agencies, including the local area

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Good

designated officer. The outcome of the investigation is that the allegation was unfounded and malicious. External agencies report high levels of confidence that the home provides a safe environment for children, that staff take effective action to safeguard children and that the home responds appropriately to any issues of concern that arise. The home provides a safe physical environment for young people.

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Outstanding

The home’s manager is suitably qualified and experienced for the role. She leads the home with drive, commitment and passion, frequently going above expectation to ensure the best possible care for young people. The manager has highly positive relationships with the young people placed and acts as a strong advocate for them. Young people trust her to act on their behalf and to get the best for them. The manager has a great deal of support from the company’s director of care in the day-to-day running of the home. He also shows a high level of commitment to ensuring that a high-quality service is delivered to the young people. The home has more than sufficient staffing for the number of young people currently placed, allowing them to have very high levels of adult attention. Some changes have occurred in the staff team due to staff leaving and the make-up of staff teams being altered. Although this has had some impact on the young people,

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Outstanding

they are helped to understand why staff move on. The level of monitoring in the home is exceptionally high, both internally and externally. External monitoring provides constructive support to continue to raise standards and ensure that the home maintains a high level of care. The manager has in-depth knowledge of the home’s strengths and weaknesses through regular scrutiny and rigorous oversight. She strives to maintain a very high level of care and puts plans in place to ensure that this is delivered. Managers are committed to the home’s improvement and invest in training and development for staff, for example through providing therapeutic training as the home moves towards a therapeutic model. Managers have highly effective systems in place to monitor young people’s progress and take action if they believe that a young person is not making progress as expected. Support for staff is very good. Staff report high levels of satisfaction with

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Outstanding

supervision and feel that they can approach managers at any time for advice and support. Staff questionnaires are used to inform the appraisal process. There is commitment to staff development and a clear process of progression should staff wish to develop their career. Staff are well qualified. Although one member of staff has not attained the Level 3 diploma within the required timescale, there is a reasonable explanation for this. Staff have built highly effective relationships with external agencies and work in a positive and proactive way to ensure that young people’s all-round needs are met. Managers place a high level of importance on training and developing staff. They are committed to providing meaningful and targeted training to ensure that each child receives care that is tailored to their individual needs. There are regular consultation sessions with the company therapist in respect of individual children.

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Outstanding

The therapist also provides support to any staff dealing with issues arising in order to better enable them to provide the right care to young people. The company has recently changed its responsible individual and the regulator awaits information as to his suitability. The director of care continues to provide supervision to the manager and has day-to-day oversight of the home, minimising any impact of the change in responsible individual. The statement of purpose clearly sets out the ethos and objectives of the home and is followed in practice.

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What the inspection judgements mean

The experiences and progress of children and young people are at the centre of the inspection. Inspectors use their professional judgement to determine the weight and significance of their findings in this respect. The judgements included in the report are made against the ‘Inspection of children’s homes: framework for inspection’.

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What the inspection judgements mean

An outstanding children’s home provides highly effective services that contribute to significantly improved outcomes for children and young people who need help, protection and care. Their progress exceeds expectations and is sustained over time. A good children’s home provides effective services that help, protect and care for children and young people and ensure that their welfare is safeguarded and promoted. In a children’s home that requires improvement , there are no widespread or serious failures that create or leave children being harmed or at risk of harm. The welfare of children looked after is safeguarded and promoted. Minimum requirements are in place. However, the children’s home is not yet delivering good protection, help and care for children and young people. A children’s home that is inadequate is providing services where there are widespread or serious failures that create or leave children and young people being

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What the inspection judgements mean

harmed or at risk of harm or that result in children looked after not having their welfare safeguarded and promoted.

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Information about this inspection

Inspectors looked closely at the experiences and progress of children and young people living in the children’s home. Inspectors considered the quality of work and the difference that adults make to the lives of children and young people. They read case files, watched how professional staff work with children, young people and each other and discussed the effectiveness of help and care given to children and young people. Wherever possible, they talked to children, young people and their families. In addition, the inspectors tried to understand what the children’s home knows about how well it is performing, how well it is doing and what difference it is making for the children and young people whom it is trying to help, protect and look after. This inspection was carried out under the Care Standards Act 2000 to assess the effectiveness of the service and to consider how well it complies with the Children’s

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Information about this inspection

Homes (England) Regulations 2015 and the ‘Guide to the children’s homes regulations including the quality standards’. the guidance ‘Raising concerns and making complaints about Ofsted’, which is available from Ofsted’s website: www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ofsted . If you would like Ofsted to send you a copy of the guidance, please telephone 0300 123 4234, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk .

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Information about this inspection

achieve excellence in the care of children and young people, and in education and skills for learners of all ages. It regulates and inspects childcare and children’s social care, and inspects the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service (Cafcass), schools, colleges, initial teacher training, work- based learning and skills training, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It inspects services for children looked after and child protection. If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 4234, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk . You may reuse this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence , write to the Information Policy Team,

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Information about this inspection

The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk .

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Information about this inspection

Interested in our work? You can subscribe to our monthly newsletter for more information and updates: http://eepurl.com/iTrDn .

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Information about this inspection

T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ofsted

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